Editor’s View: Could FW event be your first spring day out?
© Tim Scrivener Open the arable section of Farmers Weekly this week (3 May issue) and the widening diversity of the sector is laid bare.
In one lane is an admirable farmer pushing the boundary of how much winter barley can be squeezed out of a hectare, utilising every tool that modern science has placed at his disposal.
He has aligned good land with the right economic and agronomic approach and will elicit a contented nod of approval from a large swathe of our audience.
See also: 5 reasons to come to Transition Live
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In the other lane are the admirable farmers pushing the boundaries of how much food can be squeezed out of a hectare with very limited spend on inputs and an aspiration to get to organic no-till.
They have aligned organic, premium-earning food production with income streams from environmental payments and will elicit a contented nod of approval from another large swathe of our audience.
In the middle of course, this year more than any, are folk who have mauled in crops any way they can in the hope they have something to harvest this summer.
While the latter path has been taken out of pure necessity, it is to be celebrated that there are still choices available to those seeking to make a living from the land.
Many of you will have been in pure survival mode these past months, and the arrival of some warmer weather this week has felt like a tonic – even if it does mean a tidal wave of jobs that need to be caught up on.
But I hope that many of you will remember the first lesson of Wind in the Willows – a long list of jobs did not stop Mole having a day out.
Show season is nearly upon us, with the mighty Balmoral and Devon County among a slew scheduled for this month.
But if you want a farming day out before all of those, then you are warmly invited to join the hundreds of farmers that have already registered to come to Cambridge University Farm next Thursday (9 May) for Transition Live.
This is the latest iteration of our ongoing Transition project, bringing people together to discuss how to secure a profitable future for their business amid the upheaval of dwindling area payments, new environmental schemes and much more.
All three types of farmer mentioned above will be represented, with sessions on food production, business and the environment, as well as farm tours.
I can feel some upturned eyes at the thought of leaving the farm with all that’s going on, but the beef sector research we published last week is still ringing in my ears, with respondents saying they only took 10 days a year off on average, but wanted 18.
As noted on this week’s Letters page (3 May issue), the risks that arise from always being in a rush can take a significant toll on physical and mental health.
By the way, if you’d rather take that well-earned day off to go to the seaside instead, that’s fine too.